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Faculty of Science

Researcher associated with Laurier centre wins Health Research prize for work on Parkinson’s and driving

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Jan 14/14

Alex Crizzle won the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR) Institute for Aging “Age+ Prize” for the doctoral research on Parkinson’s disease he conducted at Laurier’s Sun Life Financial Movement Disorders Research & Rehabilitation Centre (MDRC). The prize recognizes excellence in research on aging by graduate and postdoctoral students and clinical residents from all disciplines.

“As the MDRC grows, we are able to provide and centralize resources for ground-breaking studies that help Canadians with Parkinson’s disease across the world,” said Quincy Almeida, director of the MDRC.

For his winning study, titled “Self-regulatory practices of drivers with Parkinson's disease: accuracy of patient reports,” Crizzle examined many factors related to driving with patients from the MDRC. His assessments included depression, cognitive function, vision, brake reaction and response times, and driving behaviours via satellite tracking.

“The project was time consuming and required the efforts of many people, including Dr. Almeida, staff and students at the MDRC,” said Crizzle. “Without the MDRC, this project would not have been possible. To be recognized is a testament of all of our efforts.”

Crizzle’s work was published in Parkinsonism and Related Disorders and the prestigious Journal of Neurology. His research was completed in collaboration with Laurier, the University of Waterloo’s School of Public Health, the Schlegel-UW Research Institute for Aging, and McMaster University’s School of Rehabilitation Sciences. Crizzle completed his PhD at the University of Waterloo and is currently a postdoctoral fellow at McMaster University.